RELATED NEWS

Tropical storm Hagupit, weakened into a tropical low, was located about 180 km east of the coast of Khanh Hoa and Ninh Thuan Provinces in central Vietnam as of 9 p.m., bringing wind sustained winds between 39 kph and 49 kph.

The tropical low is expected to head west-southwestward at 20-25 kph in the next 12 hours and hit this area at 7 a.m. tomorrow, according to the National Center for Hydrometeorology Forecasting.

As it reaches Ninh Thuan and Binh Thuan Provinces, winds would slow down to less than 39 kph, according to the center.

Central Vietnamese provinces along the coast from Thua Thien Hue to Ninh Thuan can expect heavy rains caused by the tropical low, the center said.

Hagupit, which made landfall as a powerful typhoon in the Philippines late Saturday, destroyed nearly 16,500 houses and damaged more than 33,100 on the island of Samar before making its way slowly across the country.

It was then weakened into a tropical storm, due in part to interaction with the Philippines' numerous islands, some of which are very mountainous.